Per AmoMama, Gene Hackman married his former wife, Faye Maltese, early in his career. They would eventually divorce after 30 years together.
Hackman and Maltese had three children together, Leslie, Elizabeth, and Christopher (via Closer Weekly). His children have chosen to remain out of the spotlight and live quiet lives. It doesn’t seem that any of his children chose to follow in his acting footsteps.
In an interview with GQ, Hackman noted that while his relationship with his children remained strong, being away from home for acting gigs wasn’t easy. He said, “I lost touch with my son in terms of advice early on. Maybe it had to do with being gone so much, doing location films when he was at an age where he needed support and guidance.” He continued, “It was very tough for me to be gone for three months and then come home and start bossing him around.”
A source close to Hackman told Closer Weekly that he wished he had been around for his children more while they were growing up but that they remain close to this day.
